1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to inspection systems generally and, more particularly, to a novel inspection system in which an image of the item being inspected and the item itself lie in a single line of sight of the inspector.
2. Background Art
Various types of inspection system are widely used in a broad range of applications. Typically, such systems are employed in the manual or semi-automatic inspection of finished or in-process manufactured items and usually require the inspector to manually place one such item after another in the field of view of a video camera. Frequently, it is necessary to view magnified portions of the items.
Prior known systems which employ video images in an inspection system are described, for example, in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,818,125, issued June 18, 1974, lto Butterfield and 4,232,335, issued Nov. 4, 1980, to Nakagawa et al. The former patent discloses a stereo television microscope in which the operator views a cathode ray tube (CRT) which is disposed at an angle from what would be the line of sight from the operator to the object being viewed. The latter patent discloses a numerical control tape preparation machine which includes a horizontal surface on which a printed circuit board may be placed, a video camera mounted vertically over the board, and a CRT monitor screen mounted in a vertical surface at one side of the camera.
A substantial disadvantage with such arrangements is that when the operator needs to place, or readjust the placement of, the object to be viewed, the operator experiences spacial disorientation, since the object the operator is manipulating is in one line of sight, while the image he is viewing is in another line of sight. This arrangement makes it difficult to quickly place the object in the proper position to be viewed and can result in a certain amount of frustration and fatigue of the inspector, as well as inefficiency caused by the amount of time required for placing, or readjusting the placement of, the object. It would thus be desirable to employ an inspection system in which the object and the image being viewed are in a single line of sight.
Accordingly, it is a principal object of the present invention to provide an inspection system which provides correct spacial orientation.
It is another object of the invention to provide such a system that is simply constructed and flexible in application.
Other objects of the invention, as well as particular features and advantages thereof, will, in part, be obvious and will, in part, be apparent from the following description and the accompanying drawing figures.